New York Giants to host Dallas Cowboys in 2012 NFL season opener

The defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants will host the Dallas Cowboys on Wednesday, Sept. 5 to open the 2012 NFL season.

League officials made the announcement on Tuesday at the NFL's annual meeting.

It's the ninth-straight year a Super Bowl winner will open the game at home. The Giants will attempt to keep defending champions undefeated in the opener. Previous winners are 8-0.

This is only the second divisional matchup in the 10-year history of the game. The only other time it happened: 2008, when the Giants hosted the Washington Redskins after defeating the New England Patriots in the previous Super Bowl.

The game will be played at 8:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday and will be broadcast by NBC. It's one day earlier than the usual Thursday date to avoid President Obama's nomination speech at the Democratic National Convention.

Other marquee games will be announced before the official schedule release next month. Peyton Manning and the Broncos are reportedly in the mix to be featured on NBC's other Week 1 broadcast. Our guess: A playoff rematch with the Pittsburgh Steelers will be on Sunday night's premiere.